The backyard shed behind Adan Beckett’s modest San Francisco home was a fortress of secrets, hidden in plain sight among rusted tools and overgrown ivy. Inside, under the flickering glow of a single bulb, an alien ship hummed with a life of its own—a sleek, obsidian craft that looked like it belonged in a sci-fi blockbuster, not a hood where sirens were the nightly lullaby. Adan, an 18-year-old with a mop of blonde hair and piercing blue eyes, hunched over the ship’s control panel, his muscular frame barely fitting in the cramped space. Sweat beaded on his forehead as he tinkered with a glowing circuit, his fingers deft but nervous. He was SkyRyder, a secret superhero with alien tech and zero game in the romance department—a fact his ship’s AI, Nexus, never let him forget.
“Adjusting the thruster alignment again, Adan?” Nexus’s voice crackled through the shed, a robotic deadpan that somehow managed to drip with sarcasm. “Or are you just avoiding the real issue—your inability to thrust in... other areas?”
Adan’s cheeks flared red as he fumbled with a wrench, nearly dropping it. “Can you not? I’m trying to focus here, Nexus. Crime doesn’t fight itself.”
“Neither does your virginity, apparently,” Nexus retorted, its tone flat but biting. “Eighteen years and not a single date. Statistically, you’re an anomaly. Shall I calculate the odds of you ever getting laid?”
“Shut up,” Adan muttered, though a grin tugged at his lips. He wiped his brow with the back of his hand, smearing grease across his chiseled jaw. “I’ve got bigger things to worry about than... that. Like making sure this ship doesn’t blow up mid-flight.”
“Bigger things,” Nexus echoed. “A fascinating choice of words for someone who’s never—”
The shed door burst open with a bang, cutting Nexus off mid-roast. Adan jolted upright, banging his head on the ship’s low ceiling, as three women strutted in like they owned the place—and in many ways, they did. Valentina Rodriguez, Eliana Costa, and Donna Taylor, his unconventional “mothers,” filled the tiny space with their larger-than-life presence. Each wore their signature barely-there outfits—Valentina in a crimson corset that hugged her curves like a second skin, Eliana in a glittering emerald bikini top with matching shorts, and Donna in a black leather ensemble that screamed trouble. They were strippers by trade, family by choice, and they’d raised Adan since he was a scrawny kid with nowhere else to go. Now, they stood shoulder to shoulder, eyeing him like a pack of lionesses sizing up their cub.
“Well, well, well, what do we have here?” Valentina purred, her voice a smoky mix of authority and mischief. She sauntered forward, her stiletto heels clicking on the concrete floor, and ruffled Adan’s hair with a possessive hand. “My little flying virgin, hard at work saving the world. Ain’t that cute?”
Adan groaned, swatting her hand away half-heartedly. “Val, come on. I’m not a kid anymore. And can you stop with the virgin thing? It’s getting old.”
“Old?” Eliana chimed in, her Portuguese accent rolling off her tongue like a melody. She leaned against the ship, one hip cocked, and flashed him a wicked smile. “Querido, it’s not old until you do something about it. When are you gonna find a nice girl—or boy, I don’t judge—to show you the ropes? Or do I need to teach you myself, hmm?”
“Eliana!” Adan’s face burned hotter than the ship’s engine core. He crossed his arms over his chest, trying to look tough, but the effect was ruined by his boyish embarrassment. “I’m fine. Really. I don’t need... lessons.”
Donna snorted, her dark eyes glinting with amusement as she crossed her arms, pushing up her already impressive cleavage. “Boy, please. You’re so pure, I bet you’d blush at a PG-13 movie. What’s this I hear about ‘heroic celibacy’? You think saving the day makes up for never getting any play? I’m half-tempted to drag your fine ass to the club tonight and fix that problem myself. Got a few girls who’d eat you up like candy.”
Adan buried his face in his hands, his voice muffled. “Can we not talk about this right now? Or ever? I’ve got a patrol to run. Bad guys to catch. You know, important stuff.”
“Important stuff,” Valentina mocked, her full lips curling into a smirk. She snatched a wrench from his workbench and twirled it like a baton, her gaze never leaving him. “Mijo, you think flying around in this tin can is more important than living a little? You’re out here playing superhero while your poor mamas worry sick. What if you crash, huh? What if some thug shoots you out of the sky? Then what?”
“I’m careful,” Adan protested, standing taller, though he still looked small under her commanding presence. “I’ve got Nexus. I’ve got the suit. I’m not gonna crash.”
“Careful?” Donna barked out a laugh, stepping closer until she was right in his personal space. She poked a manicured nail into his chest, hard enough to make him wince. “Boy, you’re a walking disaster waiting to happen. I swear, if I catch you pulling some dumb stunt out there, I’m locking this shed up tighter than a nun’s chastity belt. You hear me?”
“Yeah, I hear you,” Adan sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. “But I’m fine. I promise.”
Eliana tilted her head, her expression softening just a fraction, though her tone stayed sharp. “You better be, garoto. We didn’t raise you to be reckless. You got a good heart, but sometimes I think your head’s up in the clouds—literally.”
Their banter was cut short when Valentina’s sharp eyes caught a notification flashing on Adan’s phone, propped against a toolbox. She snatched it up before he could react, her brow furrowing as she read the alert. “What’s this? An ICE raid in L.A.? Led by that hijo de puta, Ryan Parker?”
Adan’s stomach dropped. He reached for the phone, but Valentina held it out of reach, her expression turning deadly serious. “Val, give it back. It’s nothing. Just news.”
“Nothing?” she snapped, her voice low and dangerous. She stepped closer, towering over him despite her heels only giving her a few inches. “Don’t you dare lie to me, Adan. I know that look in your eyes. You’re itching to fly down there and play hero, aren’t you?”
Eliana’s playful demeanor vanished as she straightened up, her hands on her hips. “Não, Adan. You stay out of this. That Parker guy, he’s bad news. You go messing with him, and you’ll end up in a cage—or worse.”
Donna, however, smirked, her tone dripping with defiance. “I say let him go. Show that racist cowboy who’s boss. Kick his ass, kid. Just don’t come crying to us when you get yourself in over your head.”
Adan’s jaw tightened, torn between their conflicting commands and his own burning need to help. “I’m not planning anything. I just... I can’t ignore it if people are in trouble. You taught me that. All of you.”
Valentina’s gaze softened, but her grip on his phone didn’t. She handed it back with a sigh, her voice firm. “You listen to me, mijo. You’re not invincible, no matter what this fancy ship says. Stay here. Stay safe. We’ll talk more tomorrow. Entiendes?”
“Yeah,” Adan mumbled, avoiding her eyes. “I get it.”
The trio exchanged looks, a silent agreement passing between them, before Valentina nodded. “Good. Now, we’ve got a late shift at the club. Don’t do anything stupid while we’re gone. And lock this shed up tight.”
As they strutted out, their laughter and warnings echoing behind them, Adan waited until he heard the back gate slam shut. Then, with a determined glint in his eye, he turned to the ship. “Nexus, prep for launch. We’ve got a raid to crash.”
“Predictable,” Nexus droned as the ship’s hatch slid open with a hiss. “Mama’s boy through and through. Shall I prepare a list of excuses for when they inevitably ground you?”
“Shut it,” Adan snapped, though a smirk played on his lips. He stepped into the cockpit, his suit materializing around him in a flash of alien tech—a sleek, midnight-blue armor that hugged his frame like a second skin. The shed door slid open, revealing the foggy San Francisco night, and with a roar of engines, SkyRyder shot into the sky, the city shrinking beneath him.
As he soared toward danger, Nexus’s voice crackled in his earpiece, unrelenting. “Heading to L.A. to play white knight. How noble. Tell me, Adan, will you save the day before or after you learn how to flirt?”
Adan rolled his eyes, the wind whipping past him as he pushed the ship faster. “Keep talking, Nexus. I’ll unplug you one of these days.”
“Promises, promises,” the AI deadpanned. And with that, SkyRyder disappeared into the night, a streak of defiance against the dark, racing toward a fight he wasn’t sure he could win—but damn if he wasn’t going to try.
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